Motor Neuron Disease

Motor neuron disease (MND) is the general term which covers a range of neurological disorders affecting the nerve cells (motor neurons) that control the muscles required for movement such as walking, control of hands and arms, eating, swallowing, breathing and speaking.

There are five general categories of motor neuron disease, defined by the nerves affected. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the US National Institutes of Health provides an information resource on motor neuron disease treatment, prognosis and research.

The most widely publicized MND is amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS): it is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, named after the famous New York Yankee first baseman, whose major league records (including most grand slams, still unbroken) were overshadowed by the onset of MND.

It generally appears to have little or no effect on the intellect. Prof. Stephen Hawking, the world-renowned theoretical physicist and cosmologist has pursued an active research and teaching career, changing the way we look at existence, ever since he was diagnosed with ALS in 1963, at the age of 21.

NeuroSwitch has proven to be exceptionally valuable in helping people with motor neuron disease communicate and control systems using its included MacBook Pro laptop for text and text-to-speech (TTS) applications, emailing, surfing the web, using word processing, spreadsheet and presentation programs, and playing music, videos, movies and games.